When you’re a cyclist there’s this thing about always wanting the best gear. But my vision of the perfect bicycle changed a bit as I watched my fellow cyclists tackle the 400-mile Erie Canal ride a couple of months ago — July of 2024.

What the perfect bicycle means to me

I’m a bit of an odd duck when it comes to bicycles and gear. I turn my nose up at Huffy’s and other big box store brands. At the same time, I place super light and exotic race bikes on a pedestal typically reserved for A-list movie stars. My disdain for non-bike shop brands is probably overdone, as is my esteem for super molded, aerodynamic 15-pound creations from Pinarello, S-Works, Trek, and all the other Euro brands you see in the pro peloton.

Perhaps my view of the perfect bike isn’t unusual among active cyclists – people for whom cycling is a year-round defining factor. You know, you meet someone and they ask what you are into, and “Well, I’m a cyclist,” is among the first things you say.

I’m in an unusual middle ground because I don’t know much about bikes. Once you get past the surface and a few fundamental truths I become out of my depth. I live by a simple mantra that lighter is better, as long as it’s comfortable, and that an expensive bike is better than a cheap one.

I also have some brand loyalties. At the end of the day, you’re either a Ford or Chevy guy.

My cycling existential crisis

Many of my cycling buddies have built their own bikes. They have bike-specific tools in their garages and are comfortable measuring and running cables, installing bottom brackets, and adjusting derailleurs. Beyond that — they know – at a granular level – what makes those things tick.

I envy them — but only so much.

It’s great that they know how to do that. And if we are out on the road and something breaks — it’s nice to have that knowledge in the group. But if we are riding and the conversation turns to the best bearings, chain stretch, or even gear ratios, my eyes roll into my head. We might as well be talking tax codes.

That’s where I land in the bikeosphere. A bit snobby, prone to buy into marketing jargon, and always anxious for something better, whatever that might be in the moment. I spend too much time pining for the next thing and worrying that I won’t be able to keep up with the cycling-Joneses.

The Erie Canal eye-opener

All of that is to say, my anxiety levels were riding high through the first part of 2024 as Mary and I prepared for what would be the longest ride of our lives. We had signed up for the 400-mile, eight-day cycling event called Cycle the Erie Canal.

Read about it in my previous post.

Watch my video on the Biking 4 Boomers YouTube Channel.

Pre-ride jitters

This trek from Buffalo to Albany New York looked daunting. A mix of paved and dirt surfaces and daily rides of up to 70 miles seemed pretty scary on paper. The ride had me researching newer and lighter cycling shoes. My Fuji Jari gravel bike that had ably carried me over hundreds of miles of back roads suddenly seemed too old, heavy, and lacking prestige. I worried if my tires were wide enough – or maybe too wide. I worried that my cycling shorts might not be up to padding my butt. There was concern that my saddle wasn’t quite right. I worried about everything.

And then I got there.

There is no perfect bicycle for the Erie Canal Trail

As soon as we arrived at the tent city in Buffalo, I realized I had it all wrong. I had never seen such a mishmash of bicycle types. There were old bikes and older bikes. There were folding Bike Fridays and Bromptons. People were riding 26-inch mountain bikes from the 1990s with big knobby tires. Children and tweens were there on garden-variety bikes like the ones I see thrown down in the yards in my neighborhood. There were a few higher-end bicycles.

But not many.

The more I looked the more irrational my earlier concerns became. Thank God I had gotten cheap and not bought new bike shoes. They would have stuck out like a Ferarri in a NASCAR race.

I was convinced my stuff didn’t stack up when in reality I was dangerously close to wearing a tux to a barbeque.

Was mine the perfect bicycle?

Not only was my bike adequate for the journey across New York State, it was kind of above average. Compared to the 600 or so other bikes on the ride, it was not the best — but a solid B-plus for sure.

The great thing about this ride is that nobody cared. They didn’t care about how fancy their bikes were. Their bikes clothes weren’t important. Attitude was a non-starter.

Consider that we all woke up in the morning after camping in the tent city, and immediately lined up for the porta potties. Fix your hair first? I don’t think so. After a couple of days, we had all seen each other looking like hell. We weren’t well acquainted but we knew what we looked like when they got up in the morning.

It was wonderfully relaxing and simple.

Defining the perfect bicycle was impossible

And as to the bikes and gear — as long as they rolled along the mostly flat trail, it just didn’t matter. Here I had been concerned about those new SPD cycling shoes — and I would estimate at least half of the group was using flat pedals and wearing old sneakers.

Almost all the bikes had multiple gears — but one woman told me of her three-speed, “I haven’t shifted in two days.”

Confusion reigns over the perfect bike

So here I am feeling befuddled. On the one hand my craving for the next must-have innovation is right where it’s always been. On the other, there’s this nagging question of whether it really matters.

I should point out that on most of the big group rides I’ve done – gran fondos, and other regional events — the bikes tend toward the high end. And I enjoy walking around the rest stops and ogling the exotic bikes. I’ve even had some nice comments about my Pinarello road bike. This is the sea in which I swim.

And suddenly it was no longer that sea. Forgive the comparison, but it was more like canal water on the Erie ride.

Refreshing canal water.

As we approached the end of the ride in Albany, New York I was feeling pretty good about myself and my 400 mile ride. And there beside me were all those cyclists on bikes they pulled out of the back of the garage feeling just as happy and content. I had done it on a bike that costs about $1500.00 while many of them had happily logged their miles on bikes you might pass over at a yard sale.

At the end of the day, it is proof that riding is about more than the gear. There is no perfect bicycle. It’s the commaradare, the fresh air, the exercise and the scenery. It’s a means to an end – whether that end is in Albany or at your neighborhood store.

If you arrive on a bike, you are ahead of the game.

Check out the Biking 4 Boomers YouTube Channel. (BTW the average age of people on this ride was 60.)

Follow me on Strava

Here’s a link to the longest day on the Erie Canal Ride.